"In January 2007 we fielded about $1 million in sales inquires, as compared to over $4 million in potential sales in January of this year," said Executive Vice President, Joe McKenna. "All of us at SKYShades are saying, 'recession, what recession?'"

Company officials attribute such strong interest to the excellent return on investment and increased cash flow enjoyed by businesses with SKYShades structures. "Installation quotes are going out of here right and left," said McKenna. "Even when the economy takes a downturn, businesses still have to attract customers and we're hearing from our clients that their business is up, thanks to the installation of SKYShades."

For Nick Franze, owner of Tee It Up driving range in Oviedo, Fla., investing in a SKYShade has boosted his business by 30 percent over the previous year.

"How do you get a good return on investment in a down market? Install a SKYShade," said Franze. "Since adding SKYShades, my customers are more comfortable so I've been able to raise my prices and sell even more buckets of balls. Believe it or not, I have sold more than four million balls this year!"

Images Auto Spa owner Jeff Bonyage says that his business has increased by 27 percent annually since adding SKYShades three years ago, as opposed to 11 percent per year growth before SKYShades. And while he is pleased with the increased business, he's equally happy with an improved employee retention rate, which has more than doubled with the installation of SKYShades.

"Employees are staying longer and doing better quality work since the SKYShade was installed - they're no longer sunburned and exhausted. The whole environment for our employees is very much improved," Bonyage said. "We used to spend 45 cents of every dollar on labor and now we're spending less than 30 center per dollar, so we're saving money in labor retention and productivity."

The installation of a SKYShade also provided Images Auto Spa, a full service car wash and detailer located on East Colonial Drive in Orlando, with 10 times the previous workspace. And after three years, the shade is still in great condition, Bonyage said.

"It shows very little sign of wear, which is pretty impressive, considering the intense weather in Florida," Bonyage observed. "By any measure, SKYShades was a great investment for our business."

At The Globe restaurant in downtown Orlando, manager Kelly Ekas attributes a business increase of 22 percent to the installation of SKYShades over the patio dining area a year ago.

"Shade in downtown Orlando is at a premium because there is so much pavement and it can be quite hot in an outside dining area," Ekas said. "With the shade and weather protection provided by SKYShades, we've seen a considerable increase in people wanting to sit out side and stay for long periods of time eating and drinking."

About SKYShades

SKYShades specializes in the design, engineering and installation of high-tech, high quality shade fabric structures for a comprehensive range of applications including hotels/resorts, playgrounds, schools, homes/patios, restaurants, bars, shopping malls, recreation spaces, car dealerships, car washes, gas stations, walkways, theme parks and specialist architectural purposes. For more information: www.skyshades.com.